Letitia Green Stevenson (née Green; January 8, 1843 – December 25, 1913) was the wife of

Vice President A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

Adlai E. Stevenson I, and thus

second lady of the United States The second lady of the United States or second gentleman (SLOTUS or SGOTUS) is the informal title held by the spouse of the vice president of the United States, concurrent with the vice president's term of office. Coined in contrast to " first la ...

from 1893 to 1897.

Biography

Early life

Letitia Green was born on January 8, 1843. She was the daughter of Presbyterian Reverend Lewis W. Green (1806–1863), who was the head of

Centre College Centre College, formally Centre College of Kentucky, is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky, United States. Chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819, the col ...

Danville, Kentucky Danville is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city and the county seat of Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 17,236 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micr ...

, and Mary Peachy Fry, a descendant of surveyor and adventurer

Joshua Fry Colonel Joshua Fry (1699–1754) was an English-born American adventurer who became a professor, then real estate investor and local official in the colony of Virginia. Although he served several terms in the House of Burgesses, he may be best kn ...

. She was educated at the Walnut Hill Female Institute in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

, and a school near

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. Upon the outbreak of the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

in 1861, she returned to Lexington. After her father died the next year, Green moved with her mother north to Chenoa, Illinois, where her sister, Julia Green Scott, lived. There, she met and courted Adlai Ewing Stevenson, a graduate of Centre College. The pair wed at Julia's house on December 22, 1866. The Stevensons moved into a house in nearby Bloomington in 1869, shortly after the birth of their first child, Lewis, so named for her father. They carefully planned their family in an era before this was common or publicly accepted. Letitia maintained the household in the frequent absence of her husband. Daughter Mary, nicknamed "Bessie", was sickly as a child and eventually succumbed to

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

in 1895. Lewis was also frequently hospitalized due to complications from an injury sustained while hunting. Stevenson traveled with her son to sanitariums across the region. Eventually, Stevenson's responsibilities waned as Lewis married and daughters Julia and Letitia left for boarding school. After a political appointment in 1884 led to a move to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, Stevenson became engrossed in the emerging

women's rights movement Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...

. When Adlai was nominated for

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

in 1892, Letitia campaigned on his behalf. Already used to public speaking through her leadership of Bloomington women's clubs, Stevenson spoke on her husband's behalf, especially in opposition to the Lodge Bill. She also typically wrote an acknowledgment letter to local media after campaigning in a city. Lewis Stevenson became the Illinois secretary of state and father of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Governor and 1952 and 1956 presidential candidate

Adlai Stevenson Adlai Stevenson may refer to: * Adlai Stevenson I Adlai Ewing Stevenson (October 23, 1835 – June 14, 1914) was an American politician and diplomat who served as the 23rd vice president of the United States from 1893 to 1897 under President Gr ...

. Their great-grandson, Adlai Ewing Stevenson III, was a U.S. senator from Illinois from 1970 to 1981 and an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Illinois in 1982 and 1986. She suffered from severe rheumatism and migraine headaches that often forced her to wear leg braces. Nonetheless, she was described as a "keen observer and judge of people, and a charming hostess"". She helped establish the

Daughters of the American Revolution The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (often abbreviated as DAR or NSDAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a patriot of the American Revolutionary War. A non-p ...

to try to heal the divisions between North and South after the Civil War and succeeded Mrs. Caroline Harrison as President General.

Death

She died at home on Christmas Day aged 70 in 1913.

References

External links

Letitia Green Stevenson
— McLean County Museum of History {{DEFAULTSORT:Stevenson, Letitia 1843 births 1913 deaths People from Bloomington, Illinois Second ladies and gentlemen of the United States Spouses of Illinois politicians Presidents General of the Daughters of the American Revolution Adlai Stevenson I Letitia